Abstract

Urtica dioica is a medicinal plant and is distributed throughout the ranges of Himachal Pradesh. The Genetic variation was found in U. dioica plant samples, with respect to plant distribution in middle and lower Himalayas. Genetic variability was based on change in altitude. Examination of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers from six plant samples collected at different heights from sea level indicated that genetic variation was appreciable, as samples from lower altitudes showed low genetic similarity with samples collected from higher altitudes. Eight Random decamer primers were used for RAPD amplification. The RAPD products ranged from 500 - 2800 bp. A total number of 134 RAPD markers were obtained from 8 primers, out of which 27 were polymorphic (20.2%) and the rest were monoporphic (79.8%). The polymorphism ranged from 4 - 50%.

Key words: Himachal Pradesh, medicinal plant, RAPD, PCR.